Department for Transport

East Coast Railway Line

lord berkeley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what effect Network Rail's failure to complete the enhancements included in the franchise documentation had on the ability of the Virgin Stagecoach consortium on the East Coast Main Line to achieve its franchise commitment to run more services.

baroness sugg: From the start of this franchise to date, all infrastructure upgrades planned for the East Coast have been delivered. Further upgrades for this route are planned but are not due to be completed at this stage.

Railways: Franchises

lord kennedy of southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government which companies operate rail services in the UK; on which routes each company operates; and for each route, when the contract comes to an end.

baroness sugg: The information requested is in the table below: DfT-managed FranchiseOfficial Expiry DateTrain Operating CompanyWales and Borders14-Oct-18Arriva Trains Wales (see note 1)East Coast24-Jun-18Virgin Trains East CoastEast Midlands03-Mar-19East Midlands Trains (see note 2)South Eastern01-Apr-19SoutheasternCross Country13-Oct-19Arriva Cross Country (see note 3)West Coast01-Apr-19Virgin Trains West Coast (see note 4)Great Western01-Apr-20Great Western Railway (see note 5)TSGN19-Sep-21Govia Thameslink RailwayChiltern12-Dec-21Chiltern RailwaysTPE01-Apr-23First Trans Pennine ExpressSouth Western18-Aug-24South Western RailwaysNorthern01-Apr-25Northern RailEast Anglia12-Oct-25Greater AngliaWest Midlands01-Apr-26West Midlands TrainsEssex Thameside11-Nov-29C2CNotes 1 The UK Government has agreed in principle to transfer franchising powers to the Welsh Government who are leading and undertaking the procurement of the next Wales and Borders Franchise. 2 Anticipated direct award until 18 Aug 19. As shown on the Rail Franchise Schedule (Jul 17) 3 Assumed that at least 2 additional rail periods (Dec 19) will be utilised. As shown on the Rail Franchise Schedule (Jul 17) 4 Assumed that additional rail periods will be utilised to align with the West Coast Partnership start date (15 Sep 19) 5 Anticipated direct award until Apr 22 as announced in the Strategic Vision for Rail

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Israel: Human Rights

lord ahmed: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Israel about human rights abuses, including recent killings of civilians in Gaza.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The UK is firmly committed to the promotion and protection of human rights and compliance with international law in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories. We are extremely concerned by the scale of the violence in Gaza and the West Bank. The loss of life and the large number of Palestinians injured, including children, is tragic. Israel has the right to defend its borders. However the use of live fire is deeply troubling, and has led to significant loss of life. We urge Israel to show greater restraint. The Foreign Secretary discussed the use of live ammunition against protestors in Gaza with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu on 16 May. The Minister for the Middle East and North Africa also raised our concerns with his Israeli counterpart on 13 May and with the Israeli Ambassador to the UK on 17 May.

Algeria: Religious Freedom

lord green of deddington: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Algeria to ensure that the National Commission for Non-Muslim Religious Groups functions efficiently and fairly, particularly to ensure that applications from churches are considered within the designated period.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: Freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) is protected under the Algerian Constitution, and we have raised with the Algerian authorities the importance of ensuring those protections are reflected in their law and processes. I discussed FoRB with the Algerian Minister for Religious Affairs in October 2017, as did our Ambassador in January this year.

Algeria: Religious Freedom

lord green of deddington: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the decision of the government of Algeria not to recognise the Association of Protestant Churches of Algeria; and what representations they have made to that government to encourage them to process the Association’s re-registration application without delay

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We understand that the Protestant Church of Algeria is recognised by the Algerian authorities as a religious association, and are not aware of an Association of Protestant Churches of Algeria.

Algeria: Religious Freedom

lord green of deddington: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that Christians in Algeria face severe restrictions in importing Christian literature and other materials.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: ​Algerian law requires Ministry of Religious Affairs permission for the import and production of religious pamphlets and brochures for any recognised religion.

Algeria: Religious Freedom

lord green of deddington: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the content, and (2) the use of, anti-proselytisation laws in Algeria and their effect on freedom of religion or belief in that country.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: Algerian law grants all individuals the right to practise their religion as long as they respect public order and regulations. It is legal to convert to another faith. However, an Ordonnance makes it illegal for non-Muslims to incite or attempt to persuade a Muslim to convert to another religion. The UK is encouraging the Algerian Government to make its laws fully compatible with principles of Freedom of Religious Belief in their Constitution.

Armed Conflict

lord hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the causes of war and violent conflict in (1) Israel and Palestine, (2) Syria, (3) Yemen, and (4) Afghanistan; and whether they will place any relevant analysis in the Library of the House.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The causes of conflict in all four regions are complex, deep-rooted, and often controversial. It is not possible to do justice to the issues in a short answer to a parliamentary question. Extensive analysis of the issues is widely available.

Israel: Nuclear Weapons

baroness tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government, following the decision of the government of the United States towithdraw from the Iran nuclear deal, whether they plan to hold discussions with the government of Israel concerning International Atomic Energy Agency inspection of Israel's nuclear arsenal.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We have regular discussions with the Government of Israel on a wide range of nuclear-related issues. Israel has not declared a nuclear weapons programme.Israel does have a facility-specific safeguards agreement in place with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The agreement applies to a single facility in Israel, which is the Soreq Nuclear Research Reactor. The facility is inspected by the IAEA to ensure that it is not used for weapons purposes. We continue to call on Israel to upgrade this arrangement to a full scope Comprehensive Safeguards agreement with the IAEA.

Indonesia: Christianity

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the killing of churchgoers in Indonesia, in particular the bombings in Surabaya.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The Government was shocked by the recent horrific attacks on 13 May against churches and the police in Surabaya. UK ministers expressed our condemnation and sympathy for the victims and their families. The Indonesian government is committed to protecting places of worship and has committed itself to promoting pluralism and tolerance, but rhetoric and attacks against minority communities have increased around religion in the last year. The UK and Indonesian governments and law enforcement agencies co-operate to tackle terrorism and violent extremism.

North Korea: Refugees

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made ofthe announcementby the Supreme Court of North Korea that North Korean escapees campaigning for human rights and democracy outside North Koreaface the death penalty.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We are aware of the DPRK practice of handing out death sentences to people in absentia if they are deemed to be involved in activities from outside the DPRK which "undermine or insult the dignity of the regime." The British Government continues to be deeply concerned about the human rights situation in North Korea. We support human rights defenders and the promotion of democratic values, and oppose the death penalty in all circumstances.The British Government will continue to raise human rights concerns, including on freedom of speech and the death penalty, with the North Korean Embassy in London, through our Embassy in Pyongyang and internationally, including at the UN.​

Burma: Demonstrations

baroness cox: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their assessment of thepolicing of peaceful protests in Yangon, Burma, on 12 May; and what efforts have been made to ensure the release of those detained during those protests.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We are concerned by the arrest in Rangoon on 12 May of peaceful demonstrators calling for an end to fighting in Kachin, and the violence they were subjected to. On 14 May the Minister for Asia and the Pacific urged the Burmese authorities to drop the charges against the demonstrators, and withdraw legislation limiting peaceful assembly. We urge the government to investigate those responsible for the violence.

Balkans: EU External Relations

lord hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether regional infrastructure, including road, rail, electricity, gas and oil pipeline connections will be on the agenda for the forthcoming EU–Western Balkans summit to be held in Sofia from 16 May.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The focus of discussion during the EU/Western Balkans Summit on 17 May was, as expected, connectivity. A package of projects aimed at increasing connectivity was announced including infrastructure and technical assistance projects.We will build on this at our London Summit. We will reinforce the importance we attach to improving human connections with, and within, the region – not just infrastructure, but also digital skills transformation and mobility among young people.

Bahrain: Political Prisoners

lord scriven: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the adequacy of investigations by Bahraini oversight bodies into the ill-treatment of female political prisoners Hajer Mansoor Hassan and Madina Ali.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: ​We understand that the National Institute for Human Rights and the Ministry of Interior Ombudsman's Office in Bahrain are aware of these cases and are undertaking investigations. The UK continues to monitor these cases closely.

Jerusalem: Palestinians

baroness tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they intend to take to protect Palestinians who are living in East Jerusalem from forcible eviction from their homes to make way for Israeli settlers.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The British Government supports Palestinian communities in East Jerusalem facing demolition or eviction through our funding to the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) legal aid programme. This helps residents to challenge decisions in the Israeli legal system. Of those cases provided with legal representation through British NRC, 97% have resulted in suspension of demolitions and evictions, allowing Palestinians to remain in their homes. We regularly make clear our serious concerns about the situation in East Jerusalem to the Israeli authorities and the Municipality of Jerusalem, both bilaterally and in co-operation with EU partners. These concerns include the evictions of Palestinians and demolition of Palestinian property; the construction of illegal Israeli settlements; the removal of residency rights from Palestinians; possible unilateral changes to the municipal borders; and the severe difficulties of access to Jerusalem for Palestinians from the West Bank, or for those residents of Jerusalem who live beyond the Separation Barrier.

Israel: Palestinians

baroness tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they intend to take to prevent violations of Palestinian holy sites by Israeli forces and settlers in territory occupied by Israel.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The UK is firmly committed to the promotion and protection of human rights, including freedom of religion, in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPTs). We have a regular dialogue with the Government of Israel on the implementation of its obligations under international law and regularly and robustly raise our serious concerns on issues related to Israeli actions in the OPTs.

China: Human Rights

lord hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what evidence they have of (1) indefinite detentions without trial in Chinese Xinjiang, and (2) new detention and re-education camps being built in China; and whether they will raise such issues with the government of China and in other fora.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We are aware of reports of significant numbers of individuals being detained by the Chinese authorities in re-education camps in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. Our Embassy in Beijing has not been able to directly verify these reports: however my officials will continue to monitor the situation in Xinjiang closely.We remain deeply concerned about restrictions on freedom of religion or belief in China, particularly in Xinjiang. We raised our concerns with the Chinese authorities at the most recent UK/China Human Rights Dialogue, which took place in Beijing in June 2017. We shall seek to raise them again at the next UK/China Human Rights Dialogue, which is due to take place later this year.

Department of Health and Social Care

Community Nurses

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the decline in the number of district nurses from 7,716 in 2010 to 4,400 in 2016, reported by NHS Digital, on the treatment of wound care.

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they plan to meet the Queen's Nursing Institute to discuss that organisation’s concerns that the reduction in the number of district nurses from 7,716 in 2010 to 4,400 in 2016, reported by NHS Digital, is adversely affecting the provision of expert wound care.

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Chief Nursing Officer for England will take steps to address the impact of the reduction in the number of district nurses on the provision of wound care in the NHS in England.

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report published by the King’s Fund on 1 September 2016, Understanding quality in district nursing services: Learning from patients, carers and staff, which identified significant problems in the recruitment and retention of district nurses and other community health nurses.

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report published by the King’s Fund report on 14 March 2017, Understanding NHS financial pressures: how are they affecting patient care?, which found that district nursing services were under pressure due to the effects of increased demand at a time when NHS budgets are static or falling.

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the reasons for the decline in the number of district nurses with a Nursing and Midwifery Council-recordable qualification employed in the NHS.

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to the Queen's Nursing Institute’s recommendation that the Government should seek to increase the number of qualified district nurses with the Nursing and Midwifery Council-recordable qualifications to 2010 levels.

lord o'shaughnessy: Community health services plays a crucial role in keeping people living healthier for longer through proactively managing health in a setting where patients feel most comfortable. Having the right workforce is fundamental to ensure this can happen and the Government acknowledges the challenge of meeting increased demand for care from community nursesWork by the NHS Benchmarking Network found that 39% of district nursing clinical time is spent on wound care and so wound care is a key service within the remit of community health services. There are a number of activities currently taking place to address the issues around wound care including the National ‘Stop the Pressure’ programme by NHS Improvement and the Leading Change, Adding Value: Improving Wound Care Project by NHS England.District nurses will have completed a Specialist Practitioner Programme, approved by the Nursing and Midwifery Council, to practice. NHS Digital’s data shows a drop in the number of full-time equivalent practicing district nurses. This has been reported by various interested parties, including the King’s Fund and the Queen’s Nursing Institute. As a result of changes, made in 2009, to the way that community health services are commissioned – i.e. to a range of different types of provider – there will be a number of district nurses providing National Health Service funded services in organisations that do not provide a return to the Electronic Staff Record and therefore this data does not represent the full picture.However we are not complacent, which is why Health Education England is exploring the capacity and capability requirement of our community workforce to best meet the future needs of the population. This will be set out in their workforce strategy later this year. In order to meet the growing need to increase the future supply of registered nurses including mental health, additional clinical placement funding was announced by the Department in August and October 2017. This will enable around 5,000 more nursing students to enter training each year from September 2018; a historic increase.On 9 May, the Minister of State for Health (Stephen Barclay), also announced that postgraduate students who go on to work in mental health and learning disability fields, as well as those postgraduates who go on to work in community nursing roles, will receive £10,000 'golden hellos’. The Government announced £10 million to support this and we are currently considering how this is best delivered on the ground.

Department for Education

School Exclusions Review

baroness eaton: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Timpson review of school exclusion will consider ways in which families can be supported to prevent children being excluded from schools.

lord agnew of oulton: The review of exclusions practice will consider how schools use exclusion overall and how this impacts their pupils, and in particular, why some groups of pupils are more likely to be excluded from school. It will also consider practice in relation to behaviour management and alternative interventions schools take in place of exclusion.The review opened with a call for evidence which closed on 6 May. This call received a significant response from parents and their views will be included in the review. The full terms of reference for the review are attached.



HL7887_Review_School_Exclusion_Terms_of_Reference
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Children in Care: Health Services

lord watson of invergowrie: To ask Her Majesty's Government when they intend to introduce the pilot for integrated physical and mental health assessments for looked-after children, announced during the passage of the Children and Social Work Act 2017.

lord watson of invergowrie: To ask Her Majesty's Government which professional bodies they have consultedabout the development of the pilot for integratedphysical and mental health assessments for looked-after children, announced during the passage of the Children and Social Work Act 2017.

lord watson of invergowrie: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to ensure that the integrated physical and mental health assessments for looked-after children announced during the passage of the Children and Social Work Act 2017 are able to identify speech, language and communication needs.

lord watson of invergowrie: To ask Her Majesty's Government which professionals they anticipate being involved in undertaking the pilot for integrated physical and mental health assessments for looked-after children, announced during the passage of the Children and Social Work Act 2017.

lord agnew of oulton: We are due to award contracts for the management and the independent evaluation of the pilots next month. The pilots will begin later in the year, once pilot areas have been selected. They will test improved approaches to the mental health and wellbeing element of the health assessments looked-after children receive on entry to care. The pilot proposals were tested with the expert working group (EWG) commissioned by the government to look at how to improve mental health support for looked after and previously looked after children and young people. They will take forward the group’s recommendations on assessment of need. The EWG consisted of looked after and previously looked after children and young people, their carers (including foster and adoptive parents) and professionals from the health, social care, academic and voluntary sectors. This included, amongst others, representatives from the Care Leavers Association, the Royal College of Pediatrics and Child Health, the Fostering Network, the British Psychological Society and Coram Voice. In addition, the proposals were tested with the Children in Care Alliance – a coalition of organisations that work to support children in care and care leavers. The organisation that manages the pilots will be required to support pilot areas to identify and meet speech, language and communication needs. We want the pilots to explore the range of professionals that should be involved in the assessment process.

ICT: Education

lord watson of invergowrie: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the reportAfter the reboot: computing education in UK schools,published by the Royal Society in November 2017, which revealed that 54 per cent of schools do not offer GCSEs in computing studies; and whether they intend to take forward any of the report's recommendations.

lord agnew of oulton: The department welcomes the Royal Society’s report, ‘After the Reboot: computing education in UK schools’. Entries into computer science GCSE have risen rapidly since its introduction in 2013, from just over 4,000 to over 69,000 in 2017. The government is investing £84 million over the next four years to deliver a comprehensive programme to improve the teaching of computing and drive up participation in computer science, including at GCSE. This includes creating a National Centre of Computing Education and a programme to upskill up to 8,000 existing secondary computer science teachers. The department expects these to be set up by autumn 2018, with the first training taking place in the 2018/19 academic year. A pilot programme will also be launched to identify effective methods for improving the number of girls taking computer science.

Degrees

lord luce: To ask Her Majesty's Government what decisions have been made about the provision of accelerated degree courses in higher education following their public consultation completed on 11 February.

viscount younger of leckie: As the Noble Lord, Lord Luce, notes, the government’s consultation on proposals to incentivise wider provision and uptake of accelerated degrees in higher education was published in December 2017. This consultation closed in February 2018.The Department for Education received a range of detailed and comprehensive responses from providers, organisations and individuals across the higher education sector. We are currently considering these responses and will respond to the consultation in due course.

Special Educational Needs: Autism

lord storey: To ask Her Majesty's Government how efforts to ensure that, from September, every new teacher will have an understanding of autism will be co-ordinated and delivered; and how long it will take to achieve this objective.

lord agnew of oulton: Teachers are required to have a clear understanding of the needs of all pupils, including those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), as part of the Teacher’ Standards, attached. The government already funds a range of SEND-specific resources and training to support the entire school workforce. The department has funded the Autism Education Trust (AET) since 2012 to deliver autism training to early years, schools and post-16 professionals in England. The AET has now trained more than 150,000 education staff to encourage a ‘whole school’ approach to supporting children and young people with autism. In March 2018, the department extended this contract by a further two years. In July 2016 the department published a new framework for Initial Teacher Training (ITT) content, which includes specific content on SEND, including autism. The revised content framework, attached, states that “providers should ensure that SEND training is integrated across the ITT programme”.



Teachers_Standards
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A_framework_of_core_content_for_ITT
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Pupils: Travellers

baroness whitaker: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to implement the recommendations from the UN Committee on the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination’s 2016 report Concluding observations on the twenty-first to twenty-thirdperiodic reports of United Kingdom of Great Britain andNorthern Ireland that schools should challenge racist bullying and promote respect for diversity, including through the training of educational personnel, in respect of Gypsy, Traveller and Roma children.

lord agnew of oulton: Under the Public Sector Equality Duty, state funded schools must have regard to the need to eliminate discrimination, advance equality of opportunity and foster good relations between people with protected characteristics and none. This includes children of Gypsy, Traveller or Roma ethnicity. All schools are legally required to have a behaviour policy with measures to prevent all forms of bullying among pupils. Schools have the freedom to develop their own anti-bullying strategies appropriate to their environment and to decide what training to offer to staff and are held to account by Ofsted. The government's advice to schools makes it clear that a school’s response to bullying should not start at the point at which a child is bullied; the best schools develop strategies to prevent bullying occurring in the first place. The Department for Education is providing £1.75 million of funding, over two years, for four anti-bullying organisations to support schools tackle bullying. This funding includes projects targeting bullying of particular groups. The project, led by the Anne Frank Trust, encourages young people to think about the importance of tackling prejudice, discrimination and bullying using film clips as a catalyst for discussion. The department is also working on a tool to support schools to create an atmosphere of respect, which will reduce bullying behaviour. This will help them meet their duties in respect of equalities, behaviour, bullying and safeguarding in a way which minimises the burdens. We plan to consult Gypsy, Roma and Traveller stakeholders in the development of this work.

Children: Speech and Language Disorders

lord ramsbotham: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Secretary of State for Education has discussed the recommendations in the report by I CAN and the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists,Bercow: Ten Years On,published on 20 March,with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, particularly the recommendation that there should be a new cross-government strategy for children.

lord agnew of oulton: Officials from the Department for Education (DfE) and the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) are in regular contact and are working together to implement the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) reforms underpinned by the Children and Families Act 2014. Effective joint working between DHSC and DfE is at the heart of these reforms, at national and local level. The recommendations of the ‘Bercow: Ten Years On’ report are very timely. They come at a time when we are considering the All Party Parliamentary Group on Autism’s report ‘Autism and education in England 2017’; and considering our response to Dame Christine Lenehan’s review of residential special schools, ‘Good Intentions, Good Enough?’. We shall consider all of these reports carefully and are committed to responding to Dame Christine Lenehan’s review. We will take that opportunity to set out how the government will continue working to achieve the vision of a reformed SEND system, underpinned by the Children and Families Act 2014.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government: Public Consultation

lord kennedy of southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many consultations are presently being conducted by the Ministry ofHousing, Communities and Local Government.

lord kennedy of southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many calls for evidence are presently underway at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

lord kennedy of southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many consultations and calls for evidence undertaken by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government have concluded since 2014–15 butare still awaiting a Government response.

lord bourne of aberystwyth: As set out on gov.uk, there have been 169 consultations and calls for evidence linked to the Department since April 2014, four of which are open consultations, none of which are open calls for evidence, and 126 of which have had a published response. The four open consultations are:Air quality: draft Clean Air Strategy 2018Approved Document B (fire safety): amendments to statutory guidance on assessments in lieu of testsPowers for dealing with unauthorised development and encampmentsIntegrated Communities Strategy green paper

Grenfell Tower: Fires

lord kennedy of southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government when they last met Councillors and officials from the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea to discuss matters related to the fire at Grenfell Tower.

lord bourne of aberystwyth: The Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, chairs a regular Ministerial Recovery Group, which Councillors and officials from the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (RBKC) attend, to coordinate cross Government activity and to monitor, challenge and support RBKC in delivering services to those affected. The most recent meeting was on 22 May 2018.

Local Government: Sales

lord kennedy of southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment have they made of the use of conditional sale agreements by local authorities.

lord bourne of aberystwyth: The terms under which local authorities dispose of their assets is a matter for local authorities. The government has made no assessment of their use of conditional sale agreements.

Aviation: Planning

lord rotherwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to amending paragraph (z) of the table in Schedule 4 of the Town and Country Planning (Development Management Procedure) (England) Order 2015 to include aerodromes used for sport and recreational activities.

lord bourne of aberystwyth: The government has no current plans to amend paragraph (z) of Schedule 4 of the Town and Country Planning (Development Management Procedure (England) Order 2015. Any interested party can make representations on a planning application; it is not restricted to statutory consultees. While aerodromes are not statutory consultees on planning applications, they can work proactively with local councils to identify developments where they might have an interest, and can comment on proposals within the normal public consultation period. The planning authority must take into account and weigh up all the material planning considerations in reaching its decision. Local planning authorities can consider whether there are planning policy reasons to engage other consultees who - whilst not designated in law - are likely to have an interest in a proposed development.

Department for Work and Pensions

Chronic Illnesses

baroness burt of solihull: To ask Her Majesty's Government, in the light of the recent report from the Centre for the Study of Financial InnovationTheDependency Trap—are we fit to face the future?,what steps they are taking to reduce therates of economic inactivity in the UK due to preventable chronic conditions among those aged over 50.

baroness buscombe: The number of workers aged 50 and over currently in employment is at a record high of 10.1 million aged 50 plus in the UK: an increase of 1.4 million over the last 5 years and an increase of 2.2 million over the last 10 years The Government has in place a comprehensive Fuller Working Lives strategy to support older workers to remain in and return to the labour market and tackle the barriers to doing so. The Government has appointed the Business in The Community (BITC) Age at Work leadership team, as Business Champion for Older Workers; the BITC team of employers spearhead the Government’s Fuller Working Lives work. The Department has also expanded its network of Older Claimant Champions to all 34 Jobcentre Plus districts to work collaboratively with over 11,000 work coaches. The Government understands the importance to individuals and the wider economy of preventing avoidable ill-health and enabling more disabled people and people with long-term health conditions to get into and stay in work. We continue to support and encourage employers to recruit and retain with confidence; to build our offer of personalised employment support and are exploring how to improve access to Occupational Health services. From 2013 to 2017; the number of people with a long term health condition in work increased by nearly 600,000 to 7.4 million; with an employment rate of 62 per cent that is an increase of 4.3 percentage points in the same period. The Government has also committed to seeing one million more disabled people in work over the next ten years. On 30 November 2017, we published ‘Improving Lives: The Future of Work, Health and Disability’, which sets out actions we are taking across three key settings; in the welfare system; in the workplace and in health services – with health professionals ready to talk about health barriers to work. We are investing up to £115 million of programme funding to support the work and health agenda to enable investment in new models and the evidence of what works this includes: o more than doubling the number of Employment Advisers in Improving Access to Psychological Therapies services;o mental health trials; ando the Work and Health Innovation Fund – which is funded by contributions from Department for Work and Pensions , Department for Health and social Care, and NHS England.  Background note:Please note that Office for National Statistics did recently release some more recent employment estimates for people with disabilities and people with long-term health conditions. However, these are subject to health warnings while ONS complete their investigations into an apparent discontinuity in the figures. Therefore, we have advised that public statements should be based on estimates up to quarter 2 (April-June) 2017, the most period for which ONS have published estimates without health warnings.

Home Office

Asylum

the marquess of lothian: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is (1) the procedure for decision-making on asylum cases, and (2) the average length of time it takes for a caseworker to consider each asylum case; and how many decisions each caseworker is expected to make per week.

baroness williams of trafford: All asylum claims lodged in the UK are carefully considered on their individual merits against a background of relevant case law and up to date country information. We ensure that claimants are given every opportunity to disclose information relevant to their claim before a decision is taken.We do not record data on the length of time it takes to consider individual cases. Decisions on asylum claims are made by Decision Makers within the Asylum Intake and Casework Unit and the Home Office has rolling recruitment campaigns to ensure the number of Decision Makers are maintained at a level that allows the Home Office to progress cases in line with service standards.Data on performance against the published service standard can be found on tabs Asy 10 and 11 at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/asylum-transparency-data-february-2018.



Tables Asy _10 and Asy_11 
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Deportation: Windrush Generation

lord roberts of llandudno: To ask Her Majesty's Government what compensation they plan to give to members of the Windrush generation who may have been wrongly deported.

baroness williams of trafford: The Government is clear that where the Windrush generation have suffered loss, they will be compensated and the Home Office is setting up a new scheme to deliver this, which will be overseen by an Independent Person.As a first stage, the Home Office has launched a Call for Evidence which is an opportunity for those who have been affected, and their families, to tell us what happened, how it has affected them and what they believe the compensation scheme needs to address.Further information on the findings of the Call for Evidence will be published in the coming weeks. These will be used to inform the design options and scope of a compensation scheme.